THE newly formed Andover ladies water polo side got their first taste of competitive action with a friendly at Basingstoke.

Basingstoke fielded several of their younger and less experienced players, so the friendly provided the perfect opportunity for both teams to have a competitive game.

The first period saw Andover have the majority of the attacking play, with several early attempts on goal and some great defensive work before Ellie Roche broke the deadlock.

However, towards the end of the first period Basingstoke levelled.

The second period was equally close until Basingstoke scored twice in quick succession, but Andover’s Megan Kirwan made it 3-2 to at half-time.

Basingstoke started the second half brightly, scoring several goals in quick succession while Andover failed to make the most of opportunities and were soon 7-2 down.

Undeterred, Andover continued to push forward and were rewarded when Katy Ross made the score 7-3 at the end of the third period.

Although Andover’s lack of match fitness began to show they continued to battle on brilliantly and after three more Basingstoke goals, they finished the match with a good spell of possession and Ross capitalised on this with her second of the match to make it 10-4.